I love our morning routine.
Around 6AM we gently wake the girls. They pull the blankets over their heads and generally tell us to buzz off. We persist until they sit up in bed.
COlleen picks up Emnet and I pick up Meron. We gently sing "Good Morning to you. Good morning to you. We're all in our places with bright smiling faces" as we carry them downstairs into the bathroom.
After dispensing with personal business, they immediately want to take a bath. The girls thoroughly enjoy the bath tub - dunking their heads, washing each others backs, singing songs in Amharic the whole time. One of their favorites is a song their Aunt used to sing while doing the laundry. "Koshasha koshasha. Ya bah teh lay no" (loosley translate means It's dirty It's dirty and that's why I wash it) Hey, we can't all be Elvis.
Then we pull them out of the tub, rub them down with cocoa butter, do their hair, and head upstairs to dress. We usually have 3 outfits displayed for each child and they choose which one to wear that day.
Then we go downstairs for breakfast, and Meron says this short little blessing in Amharic. It is so cute.
Friday, March 23, 2007
Eggs cellent
You will remember from earlier posts how enamoured the girls are with eggs. They sit on the stairs and chant "Oncolal! Oncolal! Oncolal!" - the amharic words for eggs. I got so tired of scrambling eggs that I took to hard boiling them a dozen at a time in order to save time.
One day I thought it would be cool to teach the girls to peel the eggshells off. They loved it. Now that's all they want to do. They will not eat an egg that is already shelled (unless it is a scrambled egg).
Today we had only one hard boiled egg left. The girls freaked because they each wanted one. To reassure them, Colleen went to the refrigerator, and displayed the new dozen of uncooked eggs. Remember, a 2 year old cannot distinguish between an unshelled hard boiled egg and a fresh egg. (yes, that is forshadowing)
So Emnet, who is very quick, grabs one of the fresh eggs and runs away squealing with excitement thinking she has an egg she can eat. Colleen immediately recognizes what is going to happen and lunges for Emnet. Emnet correctly interprets this as an attempt to steal her food, gives Colleen a head fake, and sprints off tackle for the bedroom. On the way, she trips over a shoe and falls "SPLAT" on to the egg.
Emnet is horrified. She has no idea what just happened other than her hands and her favorite sweatshirt are covered with slime. Meron, who had been casually observing until now, decides its a good time to experiment with walking in the slime, and tracks it all over the house. The cats, who happen to like raw eggs, follow Meron around licking the floor behind her.
All in all, it was a hilarious and disgusting chain of events.
One day I thought it would be cool to teach the girls to peel the eggshells off. They loved it. Now that's all they want to do. They will not eat an egg that is already shelled (unless it is a scrambled egg).
Today we had only one hard boiled egg left. The girls freaked because they each wanted one. To reassure them, Colleen went to the refrigerator, and displayed the new dozen of uncooked eggs. Remember, a 2 year old cannot distinguish between an unshelled hard boiled egg and a fresh egg. (yes, that is forshadowing)
So Emnet, who is very quick, grabs one of the fresh eggs and runs away squealing with excitement thinking she has an egg she can eat. Colleen immediately recognizes what is going to happen and lunges for Emnet. Emnet correctly interprets this as an attempt to steal her food, gives Colleen a head fake, and sprints off tackle for the bedroom. On the way, she trips over a shoe and falls "SPLAT" on to the egg.
Emnet is horrified. She has no idea what just happened other than her hands and her favorite sweatshirt are covered with slime. Meron, who had been casually observing until now, decides its a good time to experiment with walking in the slime, and tracks it all over the house. The cats, who happen to like raw eggs, follow Meron around licking the floor behind her.
All in all, it was a hilarious and disgusting chain of events.
Tuesday, March 20, 2007
Marking out territory (part 2)
Apparently Emnet learned a little too much from the soapy bottle lesson yesterday, and she took her revenge out on me today.
I was on the floor horsing around with the girls. Eventually I wound up on my back with Emnet sitting on my chest facing me. We were playing "the riders on the bus go up and down", or so I thought.
Next thing you know, Emnet puts both her hands on my chin, presses down with all her weight, and holds my mouth open. She is peering around inside my mouth like a dental student. I thought this was harmless curiosity and did not resist. Then Emnet suddenly bends forward and licks my tongue. I was totally caught by surprise and began expectorating. Emnet just sat on my chest with this self satisfied look of dominance, as if to say "I guess I just taught you a lesson about putting soap on my juice bottle."
I was on the floor horsing around with the girls. Eventually I wound up on my back with Emnet sitting on my chest facing me. We were playing "the riders on the bus go up and down", or so I thought.
Next thing you know, Emnet puts both her hands on my chin, presses down with all her weight, and holds my mouth open. She is peering around inside my mouth like a dental student. I thought this was harmless curiosity and did not resist. Then Emnet suddenly bends forward and licks my tongue. I was totally caught by surprise and began expectorating. Emnet just sat on my chest with this self satisfied look of dominance, as if to say "I guess I just taught you a lesson about putting soap on my juice bottle."
Saturday, March 17, 2007
Marking out territory
When Emnet wants something, and doesn't want to share, she licks it. Then Meron doesn't want it. You might remember from a previous post how unnaturally long Emnet's tongue is. Seriously, she could be a circus act.
So this morning Emnet wanted a dring of cranberry juice. A big half gallon bottle. The bottle was not yet opened, and we already have several bottles of juice open, so we said no.
Emnet sits down on the kitchen floor, hugging this bottle of cranberry juice between her legs, and begins to begins to tongue the entire cover and top end of the bottle. In the time it took me to spring across the room, she coated it. And she looked up at me all smiling and proud of herself as if to say "Ha ha, now it's mine."
So I put the bottle in the sink and rinsed it off.
A few minutes later, Emnet climbed up on the counter where I had left the bottle, and licked it all again. Now laughing, like she really owns it.
So next I washed the bottle with dish soap and did not rinse it. Well, I think we cured Emnet from licking the outside of juice bottles. Possible also turned her off from cranberry juice for a while.
So this morning Emnet wanted a dring of cranberry juice. A big half gallon bottle. The bottle was not yet opened, and we already have several bottles of juice open, so we said no.
Emnet sits down on the kitchen floor, hugging this bottle of cranberry juice between her legs, and begins to begins to tongue the entire cover and top end of the bottle. In the time it took me to spring across the room, she coated it. And she looked up at me all smiling and proud of herself as if to say "Ha ha, now it's mine."
So I put the bottle in the sink and rinsed it off.
A few minutes later, Emnet climbed up on the counter where I had left the bottle, and licked it all again. Now laughing, like she really owns it.
So next I washed the bottle with dish soap and did not rinse it. Well, I think we cured Emnet from licking the outside of juice bottles. Possible also turned her off from cranberry juice for a while.
The girls meet animitronic dolls
My Dad bought an animiated singing Teddy Bear. It's dressed up like an Italian Chef and sings Amore. The girls are fascinated by it.
At first, they just stared at it as if they were asking themselves "Is that a real person in there?" The bears mouth moves when it sings, so they began peering down its throat, all serious and looking at all angles, like they are dental students in their first clinical lab. THey were prying at its jaw so hard, that I thought they were going to break the doll, so I picked it up and starting dancing with it, like in a waltz.
They girls thought that was great fun. They started calling the bear 'baby', as in Daddy is dancing with his baby. They only way we could persuade the girls to stop playing the song was to convince them that 'the baby had to go to sleep'. And we placed the baby in an old clementine box in the top of the broom closet. It was out greatest hope that the girls would forget about 'baby'. No such luck.
Every time we open the closet door to get the broom, a trash bag, or something - the girls beg for the baby. It's going to be a long life.
At first, they just stared at it as if they were asking themselves "Is that a real person in there?" The bears mouth moves when it sings, so they began peering down its throat, all serious and looking at all angles, like they are dental students in their first clinical lab. THey were prying at its jaw so hard, that I thought they were going to break the doll, so I picked it up and starting dancing with it, like in a waltz.
They girls thought that was great fun. They started calling the bear 'baby', as in Daddy is dancing with his baby. They only way we could persuade the girls to stop playing the song was to convince them that 'the baby had to go to sleep'. And we placed the baby in an old clementine box in the top of the broom closet. It was out greatest hope that the girls would forget about 'baby'. No such luck.
Every time we open the closet door to get the broom, a trash bag, or something - the girls beg for the baby. It's going to be a long life.
Friday, March 9, 2007
Emnet meets Gospel
We're all gathered around the dinner table. It's a late dinner, and the kids are tired, so its pretty quiet for a change.
Suddenly, out of nowhere, Emnet sits up straight and shatters the silence with:
Ayyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyymen!
Ayyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyymen!
Ayyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyymen! Amen! Amen!
We all just look at each other like, where they hake did that come from? Then Colleen's Mom gets all red and starts snickering. Turns out she had taught Emnet that song on the car earlier in the day.
Suddenly, out of nowhere, Emnet sits up straight and shatters the silence with:
Ayyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyymen!
Ayyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyymen!
Ayyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyymen! Amen! Amen!
We all just look at each other like, where they hake did that come from? Then Colleen's Mom gets all red and starts snickering. Turns out she had taught Emnet that song on the car earlier in the day.
Meron meets JC Penney Catalog
I come home from a business trip. The kids are quiet. Colleen is relaxing. This is the time I go through the mail.
Somehow, a JCPenney catalog all defaced with magic marker has survived into my read pile. I ask Colleen about it. She says "Oh, yeah. I wanted you to see how your girls reacted to their first catalog sighting".
Meron's ears perk up, and she climbs into my lap, and she is all business. She begins pointing to each piece of clothing in the catalog and saying "Ye Ne" (It's mine) and Ye Ne Emnet (This is for Emnet). Every single piece of clothing, regardless of size or gender appropriateness, was identified as either 'mine' or ' Emnet's'.
Luckily this was a skinny little seasonal clearance catalog. Remember those Sears catalogs of biblical proportions we used to get pre-Christmas when we were kids? Meron would have had me invest months in reviewing each page of that.
Somehow, a JCPenney catalog all defaced with magic marker has survived into my read pile. I ask Colleen about it. She says "Oh, yeah. I wanted you to see how your girls reacted to their first catalog sighting".
Meron's ears perk up, and she climbs into my lap, and she is all business. She begins pointing to each piece of clothing in the catalog and saying "Ye Ne" (It's mine) and Ye Ne Emnet (This is for Emnet). Every single piece of clothing, regardless of size or gender appropriateness, was identified as either 'mine' or ' Emnet's'.
Luckily this was a skinny little seasonal clearance catalog. Remember those Sears catalogs of biblical proportions we used to get pre-Christmas when we were kids? Meron would have had me invest months in reviewing each page of that.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)